Why It Matters That Covid-19 Is Rolling Back Gender Equality

Why It Matters That Covid-19 Is Rolling Back Gender Equality

Gender equality matters. Not just because it should, but because it is the key to a peaceful and sustainable world.  

That’s not just rhetoric. Gender equality is the key to the world we dream of. 

Gender equality is key to maintaining peace, because when women are excluded from society, the risk of instability increases ;because when women are involved in peace negotiations, the peace is more effective and more durable. Gender equality is key to investing in inclusive and rights based growth, because when women control resources, they are more likely to make values-based and ethical investments. Gender equality is key to sustainability in the public and private sector, because when businesses have more women in decision making positions, energy efficiency and investment in renewable power increases, and carbon emissions reduce. And when there are more women in public life, policy outcomes are more likely to be fair, transparent and inclusive

And it is not just women who benefit from this peaceful and sustainable world; it is men too. Men’s mental and physical health is better in gender equal societies.  

It matters then that the UK’s Covid-19 policy response is threatening to roll back gender equality as evidenced in the recent House of Commons appointed Women and Equalities Committee report. And it matters that this detrimental impact is on top of a rollback that has been occurring for over a decade (the UK currently is ranking at its lowest in the Global Gender Gap Report since it was first published in 2006, with the most recent fall in the ranks by six places to #21 in 2019). 

It matters because rolling back gender equality is taking us further away from the world we dream of.

Gender equality often takes a back seat in times of crisis. But our dream of a peaceful and sustainable world cannot afford to stall. It is in these times that we must redouble efforts and ensure that crisis response and recovery meets the needs of all and that we come out more resilient to future shocks.  

So it matters that during Covid-19 women’s unpaid domestic and care work has significantly increased and their paid work has decreased. It matters that women were a third more likely to be employed in sectors shut down in the first lockdown and furloughed as a result. It matters that - as highlighted in the Women and Equalities Committee report, this is because women are more likely to be employed in insecure, temporary jobs and do work that is less valued. It matters that 35% of mothers report losing hours or work because of childcare and this is even where women are the primary breadwinners. It matters that 70% of working mothers who asked to be furloughed for childcare reasons since schools have been shut have been refused

And it matters that the majority of those making the policies that result in these outcomes are men. Only 24% of Conservative MPs are women, compared with 51% of Labour MPs. And female MPs hold only 30.9% of government posts, compared with 42.7% of opposition positions (across all opposition parties). There were no women in the coronavirus ministerial group and women make up just 14 of the 50 members of the main SAGE scientific committee

The Government’s “Build, Build, Build” COVID recovery strategy, supported by the National Infrastructure Strategy, focuses on investing in infrastructure, including building and upgrading hospitals, schools, energy networks, road and rail and flood defences. This strategy purports to put job creation at the centre of Covid-19 recovery. Yet it is focused on sectors that predominantly employ men. In 2018 the share of women in the construction industry was 12.5%, having risen only 2% in the preceding decade. Women also make up only 20% of workers in the transport and energy sectors

This matters, because the Government’s Covid-19 recovery strategy is not, on the face of it, going to create gender equitable employment opportunities. And it matters that at the same time, the cost of accessing underfunded nurseries is going up while the risk of childcare providers going out of business is increasing. This not only affects women who make up the majority of the workforce in the nursery and childcare sector, but because it is women who are more likely to stay at home to meet childcare needs where external support is not available.

Gender equality is rolling back in the UK. And gender equality matters. Because it should, and because it is the key to a peaceful and sustainable world. Don’t doubt it. Remain true to it. Call out the Government and hold them to account for it. 

Resist the rollback.


Key sources/further reading:

Letter to the Prime Minister from a coalition of organisations including: The Fawcett Society, Save the Children, Amnesty International and the TUC (February 2021) https://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/Handlers/Download.ashx?IDMF=8dd80786-be4a-4021-b67b-43f0387de5b7

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